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Next issue: We're at the point of removing the crankshaft for surfacing. Problem is the service manual merely says remove the camshaft sprocket and timing chain. unless we're missing something, the crankshaft sprocket must also come off, sliding both off at the same time, as the chain is too stiff to remove one sprocket at a time. It is not apparent how to remove the crank sprocket; it almost appears cast with the crank.Can anyone enlighten us on getting the crank out? TIA, gary

Just tap it with a brass drift; they are usually not on too tight, and you only need to move it out 3/4 inch or so to get the timing gear off the cam. If she is good and stuck, then you will need to use a two-arm puller. You will have to hook the arms over the side of the chain, but no matter since you will put on a new chain anyway.

I'm not sure if this work on the Packard 8 engine or not:

Pull the CAM gear as far off of the cam as u can. ASSUMING the lifters are removed then try sliding the cam reward back into the block as far as possible and move the Cam gear further off of the cam. Just be careful not to jam the cam against the rear of the block. Usualy there is a welch plug at the back of the block in line with the cam. If the cam is jammed hard against the welch plug it will drive the welch plug OUT or loosen it to the point of leaking.

Most likely tho u should be able to remove the CRANK gear as out lined in the post above.

PackardV8, you can only remove the lifter (bases) after the camshaft if removed. Ross's technique is the way to do it.

Ross et al, thanks. I hadn't planned on replacing the timing chain as it seems very substantial so i'd be interested in your pros & cons of replacement of the chain. we've got the cam sprocket loose, just can't remove it completely due to the side tension of the chain on the crank sprocket. thanks again. gary

My comments, for what they're worth. You should consider the condition of the chain along with the corresponding gear sprockets as a unit system - you're looking for excessive slack in the combination of the chain and gears. Examine the gear teeth for wear on the drive-side of the teeth. There is a kind of "rule of thumb" for chains; when removed if you can easily squeeze in the center and bring the two sides together for anything other than perhaps a very small amount of contact, chain replacement is indicated. There are other similar tests, like sidewise twisting or holding horizontally and judging the "sag", again to make a judgement of the amount of wear in the links and pins.

And you also have to consider whether modern repro parts are of adequate quality to warrant the replacement of serviceable original parts. I bring this up only because, while it's wonderful to have some of the repro parts we can get today to keep our cars on the road, they are not necessarily a match in quality for the OEM parts.

Owens last paragragh above is of great importance to all of us to always remember.

Case in point: About 12K miles ago i replaced the chain on my Packard V8 engine with a NEW out of the box LemCo chain from a local auto parts store. Just a few weeks ago i noticed that the chain seemed to have a terrific amount of slack in it. I had the oil pan off so it was quick and ez to check at that time.

At this point i'm not ready to claim poor quality on LemCo because there are other issues relative to the V8 oiling system. But Lemco is not a brand name that i recognize either. I always prefer OEM parts even used as long as they still have at least 60% service life left in them.

Lempco was a relatively significant supplier of auto replacement parts since 1918 according to their literature, and quite a major supplier of automatic transmission rebuild kits and service parts during the 50s thru the 70s at least. I have one of their 55/56 kits in the cellar. I'm not familiar with their other products, but am assuming this is the same company as your LemCo.

Does any one have experience with the timing gear and chain sets from Kanter? I bought a set a wile back from them because of the price. The crank gear looks to be NOS but the cam gear and chain were in packaging marked made in China. Can't say much regarding the cam gear except that the casting looks a little rough. The problem I have is the chain. It seems to fit the cam gear but rides up very high on the crank gear. You have to force the chain down into the gear. It just seems like the chain is built wrong. I showed this set to a mechanic friend of my and he says he would not use the set at all. Any thoughts?

I can buy a NOS cam gear but have been unable to find a NOS timing chain. Anyone have a NOS chain they would sell? Please PM me if you do.


PS. It just occured to me that I should have started a new thred with this. Kev could you please delete this from this thred? Thanks

Unless someone has a stash put away, I believe NOS chains are pretty much no longer available. But lots of folks I know running the Kanter chain and gear kit with no problems - perhaps you got a bad one?